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RNC flack: GOP doesn’t question Dem. patriotism
I have to call bullshit on this: Tracey Schmitt, a spokeswoman for the Republican National Committee, said her party has “never questioned Democrats’ patriotism,” but she added: “We do question John Kerry’s motives, considering his eagerness to engage in political theatrics as he ponders a presidential run.” As I’ve noted before, there is a long
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NYT smacks down Viswanathan’s plagiarism
Newspapers are often soft on plagiarists. Rather than explaining how unlikely it is that an author could have accidentally copied multiple word-for-word passages from another person’s book, the reporter will frequently just quote the plagiarist expressing dismay at how such a thing could have happened. So it was good to see the New York Times
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Duke lacrosse: Victim investigation begins
According to the Smoking Gun website, Duke lacrosse player Reade Seligmann’s lawyer has filed a motion requesting medical, criminal and mental health records of his accuser: The lawyer for one of the Duke University lacrosse players accused of raping an exotic dancer wants prosecutors to provide him with the alleged victim’s medical records since “the
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Newsweek on Duke lacrosse
The Duke lacrosse controversy is on the cover of Newsweek. While the story doesn’t break any news, it includes a couple of bits of new information. First, as Chris Lawrence points out, it notes that “defense lawyer Bill Thomas told NEWSWEEK that in the first round some DNA showed up under the woman’s fingernails, though
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Duke lacrosse: ID, cab driver questions
While I’m at a conference ignoring the Duke lacrosse case, Chris Lawrence is back home and on the ball. The big news since I left is that questions have been raised about key aspects of the case for both sides. First, the identification of the two suspects was made using a suspect technique in which
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Academic blogging roundtable
At the Midwest Political Science Association meeting in Chicago yesterday, I took part in a roundtable on academic blogs with Tom Schaller, Phil Klinkner, and Dante Scala. A big issue we talked about is whether blogging hurts your prospects for tenure by making people think that you’re not a serious scholar. Unfortunately, they all have
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Rothenberg says House in play
Election expert Stuart Rothenberg has updated his forecast for the November election, suggesting that Democrats have a shot at taking back the House: While Democrats have failed to recruit the top tier candidates that they would like in places such as Arizona 1, Pennsylvania 15, Missouri 6 and Iowa 2, they have broadened the playing
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Howard Dean: I don’t want to be partisan but…
I love when politicians disavow partisanship before being partisan — here’s a great example from Howard Dean: In one of those odd political moments that combine a poignant message with somewhat opportunistic maneuvering, Democratic National Committee Chairman Howard Dean took part in a cleanup effort in flood-ravaged New Orleans and used the moment to take
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Cab driver describes second passenger
The cab driver who has bolstered Reade Seligmann’s alibi in the Duke lacrosse case is now suggesting that a second passenger he picked up from the party later was acting in a more disturbing manner: A cab driver called to take a Duke University lacrosse player home from a team party says his passenger, now
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Jon Chait on Fred Barnes
Jon Chait, one of my favorite writers, flags Weekly Standard columnist Fred Barnes reaching new heights of obsequiousness: What gives today’s piece its special status, perhaps marking it as the best Barnes piece ever, is the twist at the end. Barnes congratulates Bush for ignoring the advice that he, Fred Barnes, had given him. A